


Come Full Circle

by rightforlife



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Spoilers, Big Brother Peter Parker, Canonical Character Death, Gen, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, post Endgame
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-30
Updated: 2019-04-30
Packaged: 2020-02-08 13:42:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,248
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18624424
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rightforlife/pseuds/rightforlife
Summary: When Peter's life was at its worst, a Stark came in and completely turned his world upside down. He really shouldn't be so surprised when another Stark does the same exact thing years later.





	Come Full Circle

**Author's Note:**

> Endgame murdered me, and this wouldn't leave me alone.

_"Hey kid."_

_"Yeah?" Peter put down the wrench in his hand to look at the oddly contemplative figure of his mentor lounging on a chair, fingering a dried blueberry between his fingers._

_"What do you think of the name Morgan?"_

_"Huh?"_

_"Morgan." Mr. Stark repeated, eyeing Peter with something in his eyes that the boy wasn't able to place. "What do you think of it?"_

_"Um..." The teen shrugged, not sure what he was supposed to say. "It's good? I guess."_

_"You guess?" Mr. Stark chuckled, crossing his legs. "Do you like it?"_

_"Yeah." Peter nodded. "It's...nice." He wasn't sure what else he could say._

_"Good." The man stood up and walked over to him, ruffling his hair lightly. Peter couldn't help but preen under the gentle touch - something that was becoming more and more frequent as of late._

_Tony Stark was not a demonstrative man, but somehow, he, lowly Peter Parker, had managed to become one of the few people in the world that Iron Man regarded with something other than loathing or indifference._

_"One of Pep's uncle's is named Morgan. He's an eccentric fellow but has this spark in his eye that - I dunno - just makes someone feel at home, you know." Tony sighed wistfully. "I want that too. To look at someone and see 'home'."_

_Peter swallowed as Mr. Stark's gaze turned to him, refusing to believe that the fondness in those dark orbs had anything to do with what he'd just said. Instead, he cleared his throat and went back to his work, his hands shaking ever so slightly._

_"If I had a kid, I would want to name them Morgan." Tony smiled briefly._

_"Your kid would be the luckiest person in the world." Peter managed to choke out after a moment, glad that no envy leaked out into his words. He had no claim on Mr. Stark, no right to be feeling any amount of jealousy towards someone that didn't even exist._

_"Of course he or she would be." Tony scoffed with arrogance that only a Stark could have. Peter didn't see the way that the man's eyes softened as they settled on his hunched figure. "Because they would have you around to guide them."_

_And before Peter could say another word, Tony engaged both of them in work - the conversation forgotten, but the warmth of that one sentence lingering in both of their bones._

 

* * *

 

 

Peter stares blankly into the lake, hating the water's tranquility with vitriol that he hadn't thought he was capable of. The funeral is long over, but it does nothing,  _nothing_ to ease the grief that wells in every pore of his body, does nothing to change the fact that  _he's gone_ , and that nothing is okay, nothing will be okay ever again.

Aunt May left his side to mingle a while back. The last he'd seen her, she was talking quietly with Miss Potts....or Mrs. Stark now, the two of them embracing and leaning on each other while the others came to give their condolences. 

He can't dredge up even an iota of excitement at the fact that nearly every superhero in the world is gathered here today to honor the sacrifice that Mr. Stark made to save them.

What good had it done in the end? They came together, fought as one, and their king had still fallen. The game is over, the rest of the pieces rendered useless.

Bleak darkness creeps onto his face, until he can't even see in front of him.

Turning abruptly, he nearly crashes into Captain America in his haste to  _get away_. Scurrying into the house, he walks wearily into the kitchen, resting his palms on the sink.

His lips tremble violently as the sobs he'd tried so valiantly to keep in during the funeral burst from his mouth, almost echoing through the empty room. 

It's too much.

Everything about this place reminds him of Mr. Stark. From the way the couches are positioned, to the haphazard way the mugs are stacked, to the lingering scent of motor oil that nearly chokes him. This house, this  _home_ is the ideal that Tony Stark had chased since the beginning, and now - he would never have any of it.

"I'm sorry." Peter lets out a keening whimper. "I'm so sorry. I wasn't strong enough. I wasn't  _there_. Because of me - "

"I'm gonna stop you right there kid."

A familiar voice, tinged with sadness has him whirling around and he sees Happy standing there with a pale face and furrowed brows. 

"Hap." Peter wheezes, furiously wiping at his eyes, blood thundering in his ears. "Hey. I didn't see you. I'm so - "

"If you say you're sorry one more time I'm going to smack you." The man growls, sounding so much like Tony in that one moment that Peter freezes. He stalks forward, and though Peter knows that Happy would never hurt him, he still flinches, even as strong arms come around him, tugging him into a firm embrace.

The dam bursts again.

Peter can't help the shudders wracking his frame, can't help that Happy's suit is getting soaked in his tears. 

One hand cards through his hair, the other wrapped protectively around his back. 

"It's okay kiddo." Happy murmurs from somewhere above him. "It's okay."

"It's not!" Peter screams, tearing away from the man, shaking his head. "How can it be! He's  _gone_!"

"He is." Happy agrees, his features gaunt. "And that can't change. But his memory lives on right here." Happy taps Peter's chest. "He wouldn't want you to live in misery. He made his choice, Pete. No amount of screaming or pleading can bring him back. He's at peace now, and he would want you to be too."

Peter's cries taper down to sniffles as Happy's words sink in.

"I..." He tries to swallow the lump in his throat. "I never got to tell him that I love him. That he was the closest thing I had to a father." The admission warms his cheeks even as shame curls through him.

Happy's features are a study in sorrow. "He knew, Peter. And he felt the same." The man lets out a breath, his eyes resting on something that Peter can't see. "You have no idea how much he cared."

"He loved you Peter." Pepper enters the kitchen, her eyes just as red as his. She's thinner, the lines around her eyes a bit more pronounced, but her gaze is soft as she pulls him towards her. "So much."

He whimpers into her neck, his arms tightening around her back. He knows that he has no right to be this grief-stricken. This woman here lost her husband, and he....he was just a fake intern that Mr. Stark had kind of taken under his wing to stop him from killing himself out of stupidity.

He should be the one comforting her.

From the corner of his eye, he spies a brown head peeking up at him from behind Mrs. Stark.

His chest constricts.

Reluctantly, he lets the woman go in favor of getting his first real look at Tony Stark's daughter.

They eye each other curiously. Peter takes in her dark hair, the tilt of her head, the intelligent glint in her brown orbs, and decides that yes, aside from her chin, this girl is a Stark through and through.

(It never occurs to him that he has the same features)

"Hi." The little girl says, a bit shyly. "I'm - "

"Morgan." Peter finishes for her, his lips tilting up involuntarily. "I...I know."

He meets Pepper's quizzical glance with a sheepish shrug. "A while ago, Mr...Tony... he," Peter swallows roughly. "He asked me if I liked the name Morgan. He said that's what he wanted to name his child, and he did." Peter hadn't understood it then, but now he did. Tony wanted Peter's approval for whatever reason.

Pepper lets out a watery chuckle, brushing away the few tears that leak out of her eyes. "It figures that he talked to you about names before me."

"You're Peter." Morgan mumbles, walking up to him. "You're Spider-man." It's not a question.

"I...yes." He nods, crouching down to the girl's height. "I knew your dad."

To his surprise, the child just rolls her eyes, stepping even closer to him. One small hand reaches out and settles on his cheek, her eyes - oh so similar to Tony's - bore into him with intensity that he wouldn't expect from one so young. 

"Of course you knew him." Her tone is oddly exasperated. "You knew him like how  _I_ knew him." She states, much to his confusion. "You're  _Peter._   _Underoos._ "

He can't breathe.

"You're our Peter." Morgan stumbles against him, her weight filling his arms. "You came back, just like how daddy said you would."

His wild eyes meet Pepper's, pleading for some sort of an explanation. The woman just reaches over and grabs something from a shelf, sliding down until she's sitting on the floor.

He sees a photograph, one that he has in his own room. It's from when he'd complained that no one believed him about the Stark Internship, and Tony had immediately gotten him a framed certificate and they'd proceeded to annoy Happy with increasingly ridiculous poses until the man had given up and stormed out of the room.

This one had been one of the first shots, complete with juvenile bunny ears and an upside down frame. He'd been radiating awkward energy all throughout until Tony had nudged him on the shoulder and told him to  _be cool_.

"He looked at this every day." Pepper tells him softly as he leans against the cabinets near the ground, his arms unconsciously tightening around the girl that he's still hugging. "He has...had...more downstairs of you." The woman scoots until she's sitting shoulder to shoulder with him, making the boy rest his head on her.

Her heart hurts, but all she can do is smile because finally,  _finally_ , Tony's two kids are together.

"He used to tell Morgan stories about you, even before she was born." Pepper continues, and Peter doesn't even bother to wipe his eyes anymore. "Of this kid from Queens who was the best hero he ever knew. How he would ramble when he got excited, how his eyes would light up and his hands would move uncontrollably. How he always put himself before others, how we all needed to learn from him. Tony used to recite your web formula to her instead of bedtime stories. He showed her countless pictures and videos of you because he wanted her to  _know_ , Peter." Her tone is just shy of hysterical.

Pepper is not keeping it together, and neither is Happy, but Peter sees nothing but the child looking up at him.

"He wanted Morgan to know that her big brother would always look after her from the stars." Pepper finishes, placing a kiss on his cheek, wet and warm.

His entire body shakes from the effort of keeping himself from howling, only the steady weight atop him stopping him. Without thought, he lifts the girl up to his chest, breathing in her clean scent and crushing her to him.

He doesn't fully comprehend what he's just heard, won't for a while. But he does understand that he's been tasked with something more important than his own life.

Tony had appointed him as Morgan's brother.

He's never had siblings or cousins before, and he's more than a little leery of small children. He knows he'll probably screw up more than a few times along the way, but he promises that he will never,  _ever_ let Morgan down.

The girl has only been in his life for two minutes, but he would do anything for her.

"It's okay Peter." Morgan wipes away the moisture on his cheeks, nuzzling into his neck. "Daddy must be so happy now, wherever he is. You're his kid too, that's what he always told me. So we have to be happy because we're his kids and we need to do what he wants. Okay?" She implores, breaking him bit by bit.

"Okay." Peter agrees, smiling through his tears. 

May slips into the room quietly, almost unnoticed. Her hand clasps onto Happy's unconsciously as she observes the scene in front of her through a red-rimmed gaze. She covers her mouth and watches her nephew gently tuck a wayward strand of hair behind the little girl's ear.

"He's a natural." Happy murmurs to her thickly.

"Of course he is." May laughs, clearing her throat. "He's her brother after all." She meets Pepper's bloodshot eyes and swiftly sits down by the woman's side, joining their hands together in solidarity.

Peter looks over at them softly, pressing his nose into the crown of Morgan's head. It should scare him - how natural this is - but why? As Morgan had said, they were both Tony's kids. A brother would be able to show his sister how much he loved her.

And he does love her, even if he doesn't know her. This child is about to become his world, she is the reason that he knows it will be alright. Maybe not in the near future, but they're all going to be okay.

Because of this little girl. Tony's legacy.

"You have to promise." Morgan wrinkles her nose stubbornly - something that reminds him of Pepper. She sticks out her pinky, encouraging him to do the same. He does so, gently hooking his finger around hers and tilting his hand forward until his thumb meets hers.

"I promise."

"Good." Morgan beams, wide and toothy - and that - that's all Tony. "Welcome home Petey." Her tiny arms grip him tightly. "I'm so glad that I can finally meet you."

"Me too." Peter sniffs. And as he looks into those wide brown eyes, he thinks that Mr. Stark was on to something when he told him about his ideal of a home.

Because he thinks he's just found his.

 

* * *

 

Later, much later, when the ground under his feet doesn't threaten to crumble with every step he takes, he and Morgan creep down to Tony's workshop in the lake house.

Pepper had told him in passing that there was something there waiting for him, but he hadn't mustered up the courage to see what it was until a four year old child took his hand in hers and led him there.

It's odd really, having a sibling, a sister who hangs on to his every word like he's some sort of maestro and looks at him as though he hangs the moon.

Those were Pepper's words, not his.

Peter takes a look at the innocuous room, comparing it to the lavish labs that Tony had in the tower and compound. It's....different. It gives off a relaxed air, one that speaks of warmth.

He fingers the messy notes left on the table, his throat threatening to close as his mentor's handwriting swims before his eyes. It's been a month since he's been gone, but this room is untouched - a shrine to what once was.

"C'mon Petey!" Morgan stomps one foot impatiently, tugging on his hand. He lets her drag her to what looks like an ornate looking bookcase, and gives him a pointed look. "Open it."

"Uh, Morg?" He huffs in amusement, noting the keypad. "What makes you think I would know the pass-code for this?"

"Because it's for  _you_?" Morgan rolls her eyes. "Daddy built this thing for you, so it makes sense that you know how to open it."

He bites back the words of disbelief that threaten to tumble out because why would Mr. Stark ever make something for him when he was nothing but dust?

But he knows now how much hope Tony Stark had and hid so well. So with confidence he doesn't know he has, he types in the first word that comes to mind with Morgan jumping up so she can see every letter he's hitting.

"U." She grabs on to his arm, dangling from it. "N. D. E." The girl is clearly part monkey as she somehow swings onto his back and clambers atop his shoulders. He credits himself for not even flinching, though the super-strength certainly helps. "R. O. O. S." Morgan bends over his head so that her eyes meet his upside down. "Underoos!" She crows, letting out a whoop when the bookcase opens, revealing something that has Peter's breath stopping short.

"Woah." Morgan gasps. "It's a suit!"

"Yeah." Peter gently sets his sister down, never letting her hand leave his as his fingers ghost over the material.

In the month since...everything happened, he has barely looked at his suit, let alone put it on. The idea of becoming a hero again, when he'd failed the one person he needed to save the most leaves a bitter taste in his mouth.

Morgan continuously asks him to take her  _swinging through the tree tops_ , and while he explains he can do that without the suit, she won't go with him until he puts it on because  _my brother is Spider-man and there's no one cooler than him!_

"Put it on!" Morgan cries gleefully, tearing from his grip to run circles around him. 

"I..." Peter starts, the lump in his throat growing larger. "I don't - " He stops as he sees Morgan's face fall. 

"Oh." The girl slumps. "It's okay." She tries to put on a brave face. "Mommy said that you didn't have to do anything you didn't want to."

Which is true, except this is Morgan and there was pretty much nothing he wouldn't do for her, including this.

"Hey," He tilts her chin up, giving her what he hopes is a bright smile. "I'll put it on." His discomfort is worth seeing her face light up like a thousand suns.

"Yay!"

"Turn around for a sec, kay?"

She does as she's told, and he dons the suit on quickly. It fits like his old one, but better. The material is different too, sleeker and stronger. Tony also made the suit a bit darker, more navy than red. It's a new look, and he's somewhat excited to see what features have been added.

"So cool." Morgan breathes, and he's given just a moment before the girl tackles him in a hug. He catches her around the waist and tosses her up in the air, earning a shriek of glee.

She settles on his hip, her arms thrown around his masked neck.

For a moment, all is still. Until - 

" _Hey kid."_

Peter's limbs tense up inside the suit.

There's no way.  _No way_ that the voice he's hearing - 

A very familiar chuckle fills his ears, leaving him light-headed. " _You're not dreaming Underoos."_ The voice is that perfect combination of snark and wry amusement that Peter hasn't heard in so long.

"Tony?" He whispers, and Morgan cocks her head at him.

" _What the hell took you so long?"_

All Peter can do is laugh, even as Morgan looks at him as if he's crazy because of course,  _of course_ Tony would have thought of everything. Even in death, the man was looking out for his kids.

"Hey dad." He hugs Morgan close to his chest, feeling his heart swell with unbridled love. "I've missed you."

The AI isn't Tony, not really. But Tony's essence lives within this suit, and that's more than he could ever ask for.

" _Same, kiddo. Same."_

There's a pause.

" _And Peter?"_

_"_ Yeah?"

" _Welcome home son."_

 

 

 

 

 


End file.
